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PFA opposes Massachusetts attempt to reclassify TDI

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Boston, Massachusetts – The Massachusetts Toxic Use Reduction Institute’s (TURI) scientific panel has recommended TDI should be classified as a higher hazard substance (HHS) and brought a swift reaction from the US Polyurethane Foam Association (PFA).

“We oppose this,” said PFA legal counsel Jim McIntyre at the association’s spring meeting in Tampa, Florida. “If they do it, sets a precedent for other states, and will require companies that use TDI to find alternative ways to manufacture their products, it will impose additional reporting requirements on these companies and, incidentally, it will also increase the taxes. We are trying to forestall this.”

Gollnitz

The PFA has created information to send to local legislators in conjunction with member companies in the State. The aim is to explain the wider economic impact to the wider business community.

“The goal is to demonstrate, through multiple communications channels, that the TURI classification is unnecessary, unsupported by risk analysis and would have significant negative consequences,” said PFA president Bill Gollnitz.

The American Chemistry Council’s diisocyanates panel is also fighting the TURI recommendation. As the panel’s Bill Robert explained, TURI did not follow their own due process and transparency procedures, and it will have a big impact. “[This] HHS directly impacts downstream users,” he said at the Florida meeting.

ACC state affairs staff have met with the Massachusetts governor’s office to express their concerns of a lack of process and scientific basis. While the rule could go through, this seems unlikely, Robert said; more likely is an outright rejection, or it will be sent back to the scientific advisory board for further investigation.

About Sarah Houlton

Sarah Houlton is a freelance journalist who has been writing about chemistry-related topics since the early 1990s. She has a PhD in synthetic organic chemistry from Imperial College, London. She is the Associate Editor at Urethanes Technology International and UTECH-polyurethane.com. Sarah's area of interest is the North American polyurethane market.